Defending the Christian faith and promoting its wisdom against the secular and religious challenges of our day.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Darwin, Yoga, Mysticism and the Power of Ideas

Ideas are powerful. Some ideas are so coercive that they can
transform our entire worldview. The Galatians had been “running well” (Gal.
5:7). However, they fell under the influence of a powerful, coercive idea.
Along with trusting Christ, the Galatians succumbed to the belief that they had
to also become Jews and follow the
law in order to be saved.

Rather than contributing to salvation, Paul argued that this
one belief would undermine salvation (Gal. 5:2-4). It had the power of undermining
their entire standing before their Savior. So Paul termed the belief “leaven”
or “yeast”:

"A little yeast works
through the whole batch of dough." (Galatians 5:9)

A
pinch of yeast can transform the entire loaf. This pinch can even take us
“captive”:

See to it that no one
takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends
on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on
Christ. (Col. 2:8)

A
thought or philosophy can potentially take us captive, away from Christ. Even
though our salvation is a done-deal, we are continually warned to be vigilant against
false ideas. Consequently, we have to remain in “warfare” mode:

The weapons we fight with
are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power
to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that
sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every
thought to make it obedient to Christ. (2 Cor. 10:4-5

The
battle consists of taking “captive every thought” so that each will coincide
with our faith and not oppose it. If we don’t take these aggressive thoughts
captive, they will take us captive. There is no neutral ground.

If we
surf the web, we need protection – an anti-virus program. This program scans
every piece of information that attempts to enter our computers. Some bits of
information are so lethal – that’s why they’re called “viruses” – that they can
destroy our computer. If the incoming information represents a threat, the
program will not grant it entry.

We
have to be equally vigilant about what we believe. Some beliefs are so lethal,
they will consume or transform all of the other beliefs. Karl Giberson had been
the co-administrator of the Biologos Foundation, a blog devoted to promoting
theistic evolution. Giberson had written Saving
Darwin: How to be a Christian and Believe in Evolution, to encourage
Christians to believe in evolution. However,
he conceded that evolution was such a powerful idea - an acid - that it had
corroded some of his Christian beliefs:

Acid
is an appropriate metaphor for the erosion of my fundamentalism, as I
slowly lost confidence in the Genesis story of creation and the scientific
creationism that placed this ancient story within the framework of modern
science….[Darwin’s] acid dissolved Adam and Eve; it ate through the Garden
of Eden; it destroyed the historicity of the events of creation week. It
etched holes in those parts of Christianity connected to the stories—the
fall, “Christ as the second Adam,” the origins of sin, and nearly everything
else that I counted sacred. (9-10)

However,
he assured his readers that the acid would dissolve no more of his Christian
beliefs. However, some years later, he wrote that the God of the Old Testament
was a “genocidal” tyrant.

Once
we open the door to certain viruses, they will not stop at the entrance. I
think that he took his fatal step when he concluded that the modern theories of
science were more authoritative than the Bible.

“Christian
evolutionist,” Ron Choong, the founder of the Academy for Christian Thought, is even more explicit about this
virus:

Darwinism exposes
Christianities weakness in keeping up with the growing scientific
knowledge. We use the fruits of scientific technology and blissfully
ignore its implications for a contemporary and comprehensive biblical
worldview.

Instead
of allowing the Bible to critique our lives and thoughts, he is convinced that
the modern scientific consensus must stand in judgment over the Bible and
dictate our theology. As a result of this idea, Choong recommends that the
church:

Construct a biblically
faithful comprehensive worldview which accounts for the growth of
scientific knowledge

This
single step places every teaching of the Bible up-for-grabs. Unsurprisingly, he
no longer believes in a historical Adam and Eve, and his understanding of the
Fall, creation and all subsequent theology must be re-configured according to
the dictates of the virus – evolution.

There are many other kinds of viruses
invading the church. The late mystic and Catholic Priest, Henry Nouwen, has
become very popular in many churches and seminaries. He wrote:

The quiet repetition of a
single word can help us to descend with the mind into the heart…This way
of simple prayer…opens us to Gods active presence.

You
might not think that this idea is a virus that can re-shape our faith. It seems
very innocuous. If you know Scripture, you might even recognize that it is
unbiblical. Against this kind of practice, Jesus had taught:

And when you pray, do not
keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of
their many words. (Matthew 6:7)

Well,
it is a big deal! Nouwen claimed that this ritual would open “us to God’s
active presence.” This claim insists that we are missing something – something
vitally important! Consequently, it is in violation of many other verses:

All Scripture is
God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training
in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for
every good work. (2 Tim. 3:16-17)

While
Nouwen’s teaching claims that we are missing something, Scripture instead
assures us that we are “thoroughly equipped.” We are also complete in Christ
(Col. 2:9-10). These assurances give us the confidence that, in Christ, we have
everything that we need. This is important to know, especially when we are
going through trials and are tempted to think that we are missing something. If
this doubt is not Scripturally addressed, we will become susceptible to every
wind of doctrine and every promise to harness God’s grace by a new technique.

This
teaching also causes us to doubt God’s omnipotence – perhaps He isn’t able to
provide without Nouwen’s formula - and suspect that we are lacking “God’s
active presence.”

Quaker
mystic, Richard Foster, informs us that we are actually missing God’s boat if
we don’t have our prayers met in a timely manner:

Often we assume we are in
contact when we are not…Often people will pray and pray with all the faith
in the world, but nothing happens. Naturally, they are not contacting the
channel. We begin praying for others by first centering down and listening
to the quiet thunder of the Lord of hosts. Attuning ourselves to divine
breathings is spiritual work, but without it our praying is vain
repetition. Listening to the Lord is the first thing…(Celebration of Disciplines, 34)

In
essence, Foster claims that our prayers and faith aren’t adequate without his
particular prayer techniques. If we are not receiving, we are not “contacting
the channel” of God. We’re missing the spiritual boat. How destructive of
faith! According to Foster, it is no longer about believing through adversity; it’s about receiving! If we adopt this belief, our entire orientation towards
faith and God will be radically corrupted.

Foster
and Nouwen convey wrong ideas about God. They suggest that blessing is a matter
of learning certain rituals or techniques rather than those truths that
Scripture reaffirms – faith, repentance, and obedience.

If we
are blessed as we grow in an understanding of God (Jer. 9:23-24; 2 Peter 1:2-3;
Psalm 1), then this false teaching undermines this. Nouwen has taken us beyond
the safety of Scripture against the counsel of Scripture (Isaiah 8:20; 1 Cor.
4:6-7). If his techniques are so essential to experiencing “God’s active
presence,” why does not Scripture ever give us a hint of the “quiet repetition
of a single word?”

Nouwen
is certainly not alone in teaching non-Scriptural mystical techniques – rituals
- in place of solid Scriptural nourishment. Yoga is also beating against the
walls of the church. Yoga instructor Brooke Boon claims that, as yoga connects
mind and body,

“…we become more authentic
people, able to hear God and experience Him in previously impossible
ways.” (quoted by CRJ Vol.3, #4, 2008)

If
yoga is so essential to the Christian life, why doesn’t Scripture at least
mention it? No one seeking God was ever instructed to do some physical
exercises in order to “hear” Him. This suggests that God cannot make His will
know apart from yoga. Evidently, our God depends on us first learning certain
stretches before He can truly reveal Himself to us.

Instead
of placing trust in Christ and His teachings, Boon requires us to trust her
techniques in order to “hear God and experience Him in previously impossible
ways.” In short, fully following Christ is not truly possible apart from yoga.
If we believe this, we are left questioning the various Scriptures assuring us
that we are complete in Christ and
the Word. We are also left wondering how many other spiritual practices we
might need to be truly complete. Our faith thereby becomes self-centered and
not God-centered.

I
don’t think that there is anything wrong with doing yoga exercises. However, believing
that yoga can make us “more authentic people, able to hear God and experience
Him in previously impossible ways,” is entirely another matter. If we believe
this, then we have to modify everything else that we believe. It reduces the
Christian life to a set of non-Scriptural exercises, thereby demeaning the milk
and meat of Scripture. However, Scripture doesn’t not equate doing exercises
with honoring God:

For physical training is
of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for
both the present life and the life to come. (1 Tim. 4:8)

Physical
training cannot accomplish what Boon claims it can. However, this is only a minor
problem. Boon’s claim conveys wrong ideas about our Savior. It suggests that He
cares more about bodily training than righteousness and holiness; that He is
more pleased with stretches than with confession and repentance. It also
suggests that He is pleased when we borrow ideas from other religions.

Some ideas are so powerful that they
commandeer our lives. If I believe that my neighbor is trying to kill me,
this belief will take control of my thoughts, feelings, and plans.

Although
the relationship between thinking and acting (and experiencing) should be obvious,
it has been denigrated by our postmodern society. Consequently, religious
beliefs and doctrines are often disdained as dead and inconsequential.
Therefore, in place of truth, we seek experiences, feelings and relationships,
failing to see that these important commodities rest upon the foundation of our
ideas and thinking.

In
contrast to this thinking, Christian doctrine is utterly essential to our
lives. For example, if we believe, as the Bible instructs us, that once we
confess our sins, God forgives and cleanses us (1 John 1:9), this truth will
alter our entire relationship with others, God and even with ourselves. We will
consequently be charitable with ourselves and others, convinced that God fully
accepts us. Convinced that God loves and accepts us, we can begin to love and
accept others. We will also adore our Savior for releasing us from the bonds of
sin and its guilt.

If we
understand this, our first question should be, “What is the truth?” and not
“How can I obtain this experience?” A little belief-leaven leavens the entire worldview-loaf.
This pertains both to truths and lies. When we are nurtured by right thinking,
we can expect it to lead into right doing and right feeling.